Thelma nodded. “He especially liked The Wisdom of Solomon because it’s a picture book, so he can look at the drawings and know what’s happening in the story, even though he can’t read yet.”
“That’s nice.” Elma gestured to the stove. “Have you thought about what we could fix for supper this evening? I’m sure Mom and Dad will be here before it’s time to eat.”
“I thought maybe we could fix some savory stew. There’s a recipe for it in one of Grandma’s cookbooks, and we have some stew meat I brought home last week from the freezer they rented. I put it, along with the rest of the meat, in the smaller freezer compartment of our refrigerator. If I get it out now, I don’t think it’ll take long to thaw.”
“That’s a good idea.” Elma put her cleaning supplies away. “While you get the meat, I’ll cut some vegetables for the stew.”
“Don’t you want to wait till the meat has thawed?”
Elma shook her head. “It’ll save time if I do it now. Once I get the veggies cut, I’ll refrigerate them until it’s time to start the stew.”
“Guess that makes sense.” Thelma took the package of meat from the freezer and placed it in a bowl of cool water. “Think I’ll go to the basement and do a little more cleaning down there before it’s time to start lunch.”
Elma tipped her head. “I don’t think Mom and Dad will be doing much in the basement while they’re here, so that’s not really a priority right now.”
“Mom may go down to wash clothes, and I want Dad to look at the water tank,” Thelma replied. “Sure don’t want them walking through cobwebs or getting their clothes dusty.”
Elma shrugged. “You’re right.”
When Thelma left the kitchen, Elma took out some carrots, celery, potatoes, and onions and placed them on the counter beside the cutting board. As she washed the vegetables in the sink, she thought about her sister and the strange way she’d been acting for the past week. For some reason, Thelma kept making unnecessary trips to the basement. At least Elma saw them as unnecessary. It was one thing to go down there to wash clothes, but Thelma had already done so much cleaning downstairs that the place had to be spic and span by now. And why, every time I say I’m going to the basement, does she offer to go in my place?
After Thelma fed Misty and filled her bowl with fresh water, she knelt beside the box and petted the kittens. They were so cute and soft. One kitten was gray like its mother, one was all white, and two resembled a black barn cat Thelma had named Shadow. No doubt, he was the father. Thelma felt guilty for keeping the cats a secret, and she didn’t know how much longer she could prevent Elma from coming down to the basement. The one thing she had on her side was that her sister had so many other things to keep her busy.
In addition to trying to get things organized at the store, both she and Elma had spent some time each evening going through some of their grandparents’ things. They’d decided to put some of Grandpa’s marbles in one of Grandma’s old canning jars Thelma had found in the basement. She’d placed it in the middle of the kitchen table as a centerpiece. To some, it may look ordinary, but to Thelma it was a sentimental reminder of her grandparents. She was sure that Elma felt the same. It was fun to look at the variety of marbles in different sizes. Some were clear, some were solid colors, and other marbles had a pattern inside. Since Grandpa had collected so many marbles, she and her sister decided to put the rest of them in glass jars and try to sell them at the store. In the hall closet upstairs, among the other linens, they’d found a box of beautiful pillowcases Grandma had embroidered. They looked as if they’d never been used. Each set had been beautifully wrapped in white tissue paper and neatly folded in the box. Because there were too many for the twins to use, they would ask Mom if she’d like to have a couple of sets. The rest of the pillowcases they would sell.
I can’t worry about that now, she told herself. I have to get back upstairs and see what else needs to be done. Thelma grabbed the little garbage can and emptied the contents into a small cardboard box. Still holding on to the box, she knelt down and took one last look at the kittens. After scratching Misty behind the ears, Thelma rose to her feet, turned off the gas lamps, and headed upstairs.
“How are things going with the stew?” Thelma asked later that afternoon. “Do you think it’ll be done before our folks get here?”
Elma lifted the kettle lid and pierced a piece of carrot with a fork. “The vegetables are tender. Think I’ll move the kettle to the back of the stove so the stew will stay warm but won’t keep cooking. Otherwise, everything will turn to mush.” She glanced at the clock. “It’s four thirty. I wish we knew exactly what time to expect them, because there’s no point baking the biscuits until we see—”
“The whites of their eyes,” Thelma finished Elma’s sentence and giggled. “I’ve always thought that saying was kind of schpassich.”
Elma snickered. “It is rather funny.”
At the sound of a vehicle coming up the driveway, the twins both looked out the window. “It’s Mom and Dad. I recognize their driver’s van.” Elma clutched her sister’s hand. “Is that a horse trailer the van is pulling?”
“It looks like it to me.” Taking Elma’s hand, Thelma opened the door.
By the time the twins stepped outside, their parents had gotten out of the van. “It’s so good to see you!” Thelma and Elma said simultaneously as they hugged Mom and Dad.
“It’s good to see you, too,” their folks agreed.
“I have a surprise for you,” Dad said as he and his driver, Dave Henderson, went to the back of the van. A few minutes later, Dad came back, leading a dark gray mare. “Look who missed you,” he said with a big grin.
“It’s Pearl!” Elma was so excited to see their own horse that her tears started to flow. “What made you bring Pearl with you? Not that I mind—I’m thrilled.”
Dad motioned to Thelma. “Your sister had something to do with it, but I’ll let her explain.”
While gently stroking Pearl’s neck, as the mare nuzzled her hand, Elma looked over at Thelma.
Her sister smiled. “I called Dad a week ago and told him about Rusty’s antics. Since I’ve been worried about you having to drive that unpredictable horse, I asked if Dad would bring Pearl.”
“Oh, Sister, I’m so glad you did this for me.” Elma’s eyes revealed the depth of her emotions.
“It wasn’t all me. Mom and Dad did the biggest part in making this happen,” Thelma said.
Full of gratitude, Elma gave Thelma a hug, and then she embraced her parents again. “Danki to all of you for being so thoughtful and thinking of me.” In addition to having missed the docile mare she and Thelma had shared for the last seven years, she would feel a lot safer driving this horse. Her sister and parents had lifted a huge weight from Elma’s shoulders. There would be plenty of room for Pearl in Cutter’s old stall. Maybe now Thelma would be willing to sell Rusty. But she would wait to bring that subject up some other time. Right now, all Elma wanted to do was spend time with her folks.
That evening, as they sat around the kitchen table eating supper, Thelma felt a sense of satisfaction. Not only had she surprised her sister by seeing that their horse had been brought here, but they had a whole week to visit with Mom and Dad.
“This stew sure is tasty,” Dad smacked his lips. “Whoever made it did a fine job.”
“I can’t take the credit,” Thelma spoke up. “Elma did most of the work on the stew. All I really did was take out the meat to thaw.” She cringed, motioning to the overly brown biscuits. “I was responsible for those, but I think that old woodstove’s oven is more to blame for them getting too brown.”
“Maybe the thermometer isn’t working,” Mom said. “You may need to buy a new one.”
“Do you think it’s as simple as that?” Elma asked with a hopeful expression.
Mom nodded. “When I was young, my mamm had a woodstove in her kitchen, and I had to learn to cook on it.”
“Really? You never told us that before,�
�� Thelma said.
Mom smiled and patted Thelma’s hand. “Maybe tomorrow we’ll make a batch of chocolate-chip cookies.”
“While you ladies are doing that, I’ll see about fixing the leak I discovered under the kitchen sink,” Dad said.
Elma’s cheeks turned pink. “You know about that?”
He gave a nod. “In addition to the odor of mildew, when I pulled the curtain back to look under the sink for some hand cleaner awhile ago, I saw the tape you have wrapped around the pipe.” He jiggled his eyebrows playfully. “Masking tape doesn’t hold up too well when there’s a leak.”
Elma looked at Thelma and rolled her eyes. “Is that what you wrapped the pipe with?”
Feeling rather foolish, Thelma could only nod.
“It’s okay,” Dad reassured her. “I will not only see that the pipe is fixed, but I’ll repair the hole in the floor beneath it.”
Mom’s eyebrows shot up. “There’s a hole in the floor? Oh, Jacob, this old house must be falling apart.” She pointed to the missing handles on a few of the cupboards. “And those aren’t the only things that need fixing. When we stepped onto the porch to come inside this afternoon, I felt like I might fall through one of those squeaky boards.”
“Actually, we’ve started making lists of things we’ve found that need to be fixed or replaced,” Elma explained. “Unfortunately, our lists keep growing, and we’ve only been here two weeks.”
“The place does need some fixing up, but I’m sure that it has a few good years left.” Dad looked over at the twins and winked. “I won’t be able to fix everything for you, but I’ll get as much done as I can while your mamm and I are here—the most important things, at least.”
“Danki, Dad. We appreciate that,” the twins both said.
I wonder if I should tell Dad about the hot water tank right now, Thelma thought. Guess I’ll wait until later this evening to say anything. If I bring it up now, Mom will probably get upset. I can see by her expression and the tone of her voice that she thinks we made a mistake trying to take over this place. Well, we’re determined to make a go of it, and nothing she can say will change our minds. Thelma glanced at her sister. At least I hope Elma’s not having any second thoughts.
Chapter 12
Kathryn shivered as she stepped out of the bathroom and into the bedroom next door. “Did you have any hot water when you took a shower?” she asked her husband.
Jacob shook his head. “I wouldn’t say it was hot. More like lukewarm.”
She rubbed her hands over her arms. “Mine was slightly warm for a few minutes, but then it turned cold. There must be something wrong with the water tank.”
“I’ll go down to the basement and take a look at it in the morning,” he said. “We had a long day traveling and stayed up late visiting with the twins. It’s time for you and I to go to bed.”
Kathryn yawned, turning back the covers. “You’re right. Tomorrow will be a busy day, and we need to be well rested. Those girls of ours need all the help they can get. While we’re here, I want to help out as much as possible.”
“Same here. I noticed that there’s a lot of outside work to be done.”
“I wish we could be with the twins longer than a week.” Her brows furrowed. “I’m worried about them, Jacob. They took on a huge task when they moved here, and to do it all by themselves, well, I think it’s way too much. If they had husbands it wouldn’t be so bad, but at the rate things are going, it doesn’t look like either of them will ever get married.”
“Never say never.” Jacob placed his hands gently on her shoulders. “You worry too much, Kathryn. If the good Lord wants our daughters to have mates, then it will happen in His time. And as far as them taking on the job of running my folks’ store and keeping up with this place… I think they’re up to the challenge. They made it through two weeks. Even with all they’ve found wrong so far, it sounds like they’re determined to make it work. We should be pleased to have daughters who don’t give up so easily.” He bent his head and kissed Kathryn’s cheek. “Now let’s go to bed and try to get a good night’s sleep.” Jacob waited for her to climb into bed before he turned off the gas lamp.
Kathryn drew in a deep breath and released it slowly. Jacob may think the twins are up to the challenge, but I’m their mother, and I could tell the minute we got here that they’re both exhausted. If I have anything to say about it, Thelma and Elma will be home before Christmas.
“Are you girls having trouble with your water tank?” Dad asked the following morning during breakfast. “Your mamm had a cold shower last night.”
Thelma gulped. Last night she’d planned to ask Dad to take a look at it but had gotten so caught up in visiting and completely forgot. “I know, and I’m sorry about that, Mom.” She handed Dad a fresh cup of coffee. “It’s not heating like it should. The other day I noticed a puddle of water in the basement near the tank.”
“Really?” Elma turned from the stove, where she was frying sausage. “How come you never mentioned it to me?”
“You knew about the cold showers,” Thelma reminded.
“Jah, but this is the first I’ve heard about water on the basement floor.” Elma frowned.
“I only saw it one time and figured it could have been from something else.”
“I’ll go down and take a look as soon as breakfast is over.” Dad reached over and tapped Elma’s arm as she set the pan of breakfast sausage on a pot holder in the middle of the table.
“I’ll go with you,” Thelma was quick to say. She still hadn’t told Elma about Misty and the kittens. She sure didn’t want her finding out about them today. With Mom here, she’d probably side with Elma, and the kittens would have to be taken out to the barn. Ever since the twins were little, it seemed like Mom sided more with Elma on things than she did Thelma. It wasn’t that she loved Elma more; they just had similar likes and dislikes.
Wanting to change the subject, Thelma brought up the box of pillowcases they’d found in the upstairs closet.
“That’s right.” Elma glanced at Mom and Dad before starting to fry some eggs to go with the sausage. “We found this box of beautiful pillowcases Grandma must have embroidered. They look like they’ve never been used.”
“There are several sets of them, and we’ll keep a few,” Thelma added. “But before we sell any of them in the store, we thought maybe you and Mom would like to have some, since your mamm embroidered them.” She brought over a plate of toast and handed it to Dad.
Before Dad could respond, Mom said, “I would think about that before you decide to sell any of them. Your daed and I could use some new pillowcases, so I may take a few sets. Why don’t you and Elma keep the rest? You could regret it later on if you sell them.”
“Mom may be right,” Elma said while using a spatula to put an egg on each of their plates. “Maybe we should keep all of the pillowcases—in case we ever get married.”
Thelma nodded. “She did do a beautiful job on them, and who knows, we may have a use for them sometime in the future.”
Thelma and Elma pulled out chairs and sat down at the same time. “I’m glad we talked about this,” Elma said. “Sometimes I’m too quick to get rid of things; then later, I regret my decision.”
“I think we’ve all done that at one time or another,” Dad commented; then he bowed his head. “Let’s pray.”
When the prayers ended, they visited some more. Thelma was in a good mood, happy that she hadn’t burned the toast. But all too soon, the joy of the moment was gone when Mom, who had poured herself a glass of orange juice, let out an ear-piercing scream. “Ach, there’s a gross maus eating the bread we left on the counter!”
All heads turned in the direction she was pointing. “That’s not a big mouse,” Dad said, his eyes widening. “It’s a ratt!”
“A rat?” Mom and Elma shouted in unison. Faces pale, they both jumped on their chairs, jarring the kitchen table. Mom’s orange juice spilled, and Elma’s fork flew off her plate and clanked on
the floor.
Thelma groaned. It was bad enough that they’d had some mice in their house. Now this?
“I’ll take care of that unwanted creature!” Dad leaped out of his chair, grabbed a broom from the utility room, and rushed back to the kitchen. By the time he came in, however, the rat had dived to the floor.
Fearful that it would run under the table, Thelma lifted her feet. Dad swung the broom, but the rat was too fast. It quickly disappeared under the curtain beneath the kitchen sink. Dad jerked the material open, but the rat, thumping its tail, made its escape through the hole in the floor.
“Oh, great.” Mom pressed her hand to her forehead and moaned. “As if things aren’t bad enough around here already, now the girls have a ratt in their home.”
“Calm down, Kathryn.” Dad held up his hand. “I’ll hitch Pearl to the twins’ buggy and go to the hardware store today. I’m sure I can buy a rat trap there. Better yet, I’ll take Rusty. From what Thelma said when she called us the other day, it sounds like that spunky horse could use some more time on the road.” He chuckled, looking over at Mom. “So far there hasn’t been a dull moment around this place.”
“Then we… we’d better all go.” Mom’s voice trembled as she continued to stand on her chair. “Because I’m certainly not going to stay here with a rat!”
“Before anything else, I’ll throw out that bread. Also, I’d better use some disinfectant wipes on the whole counter. Who knows where that dirty rat has been?” Elma picked up the bread bag and tossed it in the garbage can. “We’d best not leave any more food out unless it’s in a sealed container.”
“That would be a smart idea,” Mom agreed. “Besides, who knows what kind of diseases that thing may be carrying around? I hope we can catch it before we leave for home.”
Dad gave a nod. “Not to worry. I’m sure we’ll get that rat caught in no time at all.”
“Mom, why don’t you come out to the store with me and Thelma?” Elma suggested. “We still have a lot of work to do out there, and we need to be there for at least part of the day because we may get some customers.” Glancing at the curtain beneath the sink, she lowered herself into her chair.
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